Month: June 2014

If you read this blog regularly you’ll know I love to take photographs. I haven’t really got into hardcore photo editing but I do like to play around with the images on my iPad. here are some of the apps I’ve recently discovered.

My Lovely Man and I recently did a quick trip to Morro Bay and Paso Robles. I forget now how we first discovered the area, but it has become our default destination (accommodation permitting) whenever we need to recharge our batteries…and our wine cellar!Morro Bay is a coastal town about 200 miles north of Los Angeles. It’s named after a distinctive crown-shaped rock in the bay. The rock and its environs it are marine protected areas due to the wildlife (specifically peregrine falcons) that live there. The bay has a lovely beach with spectacular views, and the lagoon is a great place to watch birds and other creatures. It’s also only 30 minutes from Paso Robles, which makes it a great place from which to explore this wonderful wine region. Each time we visit we swear we won’t buy much wine, but each time, we do. Here are some of the wineries we love:Adelaida Cellars L’AventureAlta ColinaHalter RanchTablas Creek VineyardTerry Hoage Vineyards
And this time we made a new discovery…Re:Find, a distillery that uses saignėe (the juice removed before fermentation) to make some amazing grape-based spirits. Oh, dear…

While lilacs (syringa) can survive in California, they need attention to really thrive. Lilac in England is a completely different proposition. Given the minimum of care, it typically runs a little wild in a garden hedge or the back of a border.
But when the results look (and smell!), so good, why not?

There was a lot to see in Descanso besides roses last month. The tulips have been replaced with a colorful combination of daisies…zinnias, osteospermums and marguerites:
A wonderful combo of silver and pinks:
Love these rustic obelisks!

And these arches:
This beautiful magnolia was flowering in amongst the oaks.
And aren’t these seeds heads adorable?

Roses! What I love about Descanso’s rose garden is that it’s not over-manicured as so many seem to be. Some of the more vigorous types are allowed to get nice and big, and there is an abundance of climbing roses, as well as a good mix of other plantswhich make it feel more garden-like and less of a specimen collection.
Some of the arches are more industrial than romanticbut when covered in rosesI can forgive the need for low-maintenance structures!

For once I arrived early enough to be able to photograph the beautiful fountain without interruption. It reminds me of fountains I’ve seen in some of the California Missions we’ve visited – which makes sense now that I’ve seen this plaque: I love the mix of practical plants such as olives, citrus and pomegranates with drought-tolerant yet decorative plants.